The Secret (Butler Ranch Book 3)

by Heather Slade

  “Trey Deveux gave us a signed, detailed confession last night, including the names of the men that opened the taps at your place.” He said to her uncle. “Trey has proof that Rory Calder was behind most of it, which he was willing to share with us as long as we gave him a deal.”

  “What kind of deal?” Naughton snarled.

  “He’s still going to jail. For how long will be determined by how much he helps us moving forward.”

  “Where the two men arrested who opened the taps?” asked Charlie.

  The sheriff nodded. “And we have enough evidence to hold them and get a conviction.”

  “What about Vatos?”

  “Whether Rory paid him to set the fire or not doesn’t change anything. He’ll still be charged with arson,” the sheriff explained.

  “And Rory?” asked Charlie.

  Naughton moved forward, sitting on the edge of the couch.

  The sheriff cleared his throat. “As Bradley said, the man who abducted Bradley—and who was subsequently shot—was Jason Calder, Rory’s older brother. He’s been positively identified.”

  “Dammit, Bill. Quit stalling. What about Rory?” Naughton demanded.

  “We’re looking for him.”

  Naughton shot off the couch. “You’re looking for him?”

  “Rory Calder is now considered a fugitive.”

  “Jesus Christ.” Naughton left the room, but came back a couple of minutes later.

  Naughton knelt in front of Bradley and put his hand on her cheek. “You’re moving in here with me.”

  “Yes, I am. And Naughton, I’m never leaving.”

  “Call Hawks tonight and have him get in touch with the labor contractor. He can decide how much help he needs. And don’t pick anything new; just finish what we started.” Naughton said to Maddox before he and Bradley went to bed. It had been a long day, between the sheriff and SWAT commander’s questioning, and Bradley’s family and his wanting to see her, talk to her, make sure she was okay and he was too.

  “Anything else, boss?”

  “Yeah, don’t call me. I’ll call you.”

  Maddox put his hand on Naughton’s shoulder. “You take what you need, Naught. I don’t think you ever have before.”

  “I need her,” he murmured and let Maddox pull him into a hug.

  “Yeah, you sure do,” his big brother said.

  Naughton rolled over and groaned when he heard someone knocking on his front door. It was daybreak, but since Maddox knew he and Bradley wouldn’t be in the vineyard today, he had no guess as to who would come calling at this hour.

  When whoever it was wouldn’t go away, Naughton stepped into his jeans and padded down the stairs, ready to tear into the person at his front door.

  “D’ye no ken I’m knockin’? Sheesh.” His mother said and smacked his head when he opened the door.

  “Good morning, Ma,” he kissed her cheek, and then followed her into his kitchen. “Why are you here so early?”

  She waved her hand at him. “I brought the food.”

  Naughton watched as she unloaded a basket full of bacon, sausage, baked beans, and skillet bread. “You dinna have eggs?”

  “I have eggs, Ma.”

  She glared at him until he took them out of the refrigerator.

  “Cold eggs.” She shook her head.

  Naughton stood behind her and put his hands on her shoulders. “Why are you really here, Ma?”

  She pulled a handkerchief from the sleeve of her blouse. “Don’ you get me started again.” She spun around and cried into his shoulder. Between her sobs, she spoke, but Naughton didn’t understand a word of the Gaelic she used when she was upset. After a minute, she pulled back, walked over, and lit the stove.

  He reached up and lifted the cast iron skillet from the hook above his stove and watched while his mother cooked eggs.

  “D’ye no ken I have no favorite,” she began, waving the spatula at him. “But if I did…” She stopped to blow her nose in the handkerchief. “Bhiodh e thu fhèin.”

  He understood so little of her ramblings when she was like this, but in this case, he knew exactly what she’d said. From the time he was a little boy, she’d told him he was her favorite. Every time she did, even now, he figured she said it, at one time or another, to all her children.

  “I have to go,” she said abruptly. “Your da will wonder where I’ve run. But first,” she took his hand and opened his palm. “This is for you.”

  “What is it, Ma?” he asked when she placed the felt pouch in his hand and closed his fingers around it.

  “Bho mo mhàthair.” Her eyes filled with tears again, and she was out the door before Naughton had a chance to look inside the pouch, but he figured it was the way she wanted it. Whatever she’d given him was from her mother. He opened the pouch and peeked inside. When he saw its contents, he knew exactly what it meant and what he’d do with his grandmother’s gift.

  Bradley was awake and sitting up in bed when Naughton came back upstairs.

  “Good morning, my angel,” he said before he dropped his jeans and climbed in next to her.

  “Something smells really good.”

  “Ma brought breakfast.”

  “Oh.” When Bradley smoothed her hair, Naughton smiled.

  “She’s gone now.”

  He pulled Bradley close and put his head down on the pillow while she rested hers on his chest. “I meant what I said last night about you moving in with me.”

  “I meant what I said, too.”

  “You’re never leaving, huh?”

  “Nope. Not unless it’s with you.”

  “You love like your mother,” he whispered, remembering what Bradley’s dad had said.

  She nodded.

  “And I’m a lot like your father.”

  She smiled. “All the best parts.”

  He looked into the eyes of this woman, who he knew as well as if they’d already spent a lifetime together. A lifetime in less than fourteen days. The quantity of time meant nothing. The quality of it meant everything.

  “Do you believe in soul mates?” he asked.

  “I do now,” she answered and smiled.

  “Seriously.”

  “I am serious, Naughton. I don’t think I did before I got to know you and your family. When I saw how Maddox and Alex were together, and Brodie and Peyton, I knew, then, it was real. I told you that since my mother died, I haven’t felt so cherished. It’s more than that; I know what love is now, Naughton. True love. The kind of love that lasts beyond a lifetime. I can’t imagine spending a day of my life without you.”

  He leaned forward and kissed her—one of those soul-melding, deep, passionate kisses they shared whenever their lips met. He’d never known a kiss could be so intense. It wasn’t just about covering her mouth with his, their tongues stroking and caressing, it was about a love so pure, it forever altered the course of his life.

  “Do you have any idea how much I love you?” he asked.

  “I do, Naughton. I feel it every time you touch me. I see it in your eyes every time you look at me, and I hear it in every word you speak.”

  “I have a business proposition for you?”

  “You do?” She laughed.

  “It means you’re going to have to tell Maddox you can’t work for him anymore.”

  She smiled. “And why is that?”

  “Because you and I are destined to not only make a beautiful life together, we’re destined to make extraordinary wine too.”

  “Are you offering me a job, Naughton?”

  “I’m offering you a life, Bradley. One spent with me. You and I will take this land so lovingly cared for by my parents and their parents before them, and the legacy will live on, in us, and our children and grandchildren.”

  Her eyes filled with tears. “I accept your offer with my whole heart.”

  Naughton opened the hand hiding the contents of the pouch from his mother and slipped the emerald ring, which had been his grandmother’s, on Bradley’s
finger.

  “Marry me too?” he whispered.

  “Yes, I’ll marry you too. I love you, Naughton.”

  “I love you so much, Bradley.” He kissed her again and again, as he intended to do every day and every night from now on. “I’m thinking it’ll be a short engagement.”

  “I agree.”

  “The final day of the harvest?”

  “Yes,” she said as he rolled her under him and joined their two bodies together forever.

  Epilogue

  “Who are you?” Naughton asked the woman he found wandering through the tasting room at Butler Ranch. “We aren’t open yet.”

  “You must be Naughton,” she said.

  “I didn’t ask who I am, I asked who you are,” he barked, a feeling of déjà vu washed over him.

  She stepped forward and held out her hand. “I’m Quinn,” she said.

  Naughton folded his arms. “Quinn who?”

  “My last name’s Hess, although, recently I’ve discovered that on my birth certificate it’s listed as Butler.”

  “Who the hell are you?”

  “I’m your oldest brother’s secret, and I have a lot to tell you, Uncle Naughton.”

  Naughton was reeling—was this, or she, what Lena had been hiding?

  “Have a seat,” he said, motioning to a stool at the tasting bar.

  “You haven’t been easy to get an audience with.”

  “You’re here now. Start talking, Quinn.”

  About the Author

  Dear Readers,

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  Also by Heather Slade

  BUTLER RANCH

  Available Now!

  Book One

  The Promise

  Book Two

  The Truce

  Coming Soon

  Book Four

  The Truth

  COWBOYS OF CRESTED BUTTE

  Available Now!

  Book One

  Fall for Me

  and

  Book Two

  Dance with Me

  Available for Pre-Order Now!

  Coming November 13, 2017

  Book Three

  Kiss Me Cowboy

  Want more from Heather Slade?

  Keep reading for a short excerpt from

  Fall for Me

  the first book in

  the Cowboys of Crested Butte Series.

  Fall for Me

  Liv raised her arms and swayed as the warm breeze of the Colorado night danced and swirled around her.

  Sitting in the sixth row of the outdoor amphitheater, she closed her eyes and sang along, as the opening band played her favorite song.

  She didn’t remember how she found them, or the first time she listened to their music, but this was the first time she saw them perform live.

  I don’t wanna play it cool

  Act like meeting you

  Ain’t got me all jumbled up inside.

  I don’t want to play along,

  Dance with you for just one song,

  Then politely step aside.

  Let’s don’t let go of this

  No, let’s don’t let this go.

  I don’t wanna move too fast

  If I let this moment pass

  May never get the chance again.

  Tomorrow I will either be

  Tangled up in you and me

  Or lost in thoughts of what could have been.

  “Open your eyes,” her best friend, Paige, whispered. “He’s singing to you.”

  When Liv opened her eyes, CB, the lead singer of the band CB Rice, was looking right at her. When she smiled, he nodded and smiled too.

  “Oh, my God,” Liv’s daughter, Renie, giggled. “Look, Blythe.” Renie nudged her best friend.

  “How embarrassing,” Blythe murmured.

  “Ow! Jeez, Mom. Why’d you hit me?”

  “Let Liv enjoy this moment and don’t be such a brat, Blythe.”

  The people behind them leaned forward. “Shh…”

  Blythe turned around. “You want us to be quiet during a rock concert? Seriously?”

  Paige swatted her again.

  “Ow, Mom. Stop hitting me!”

  “Shh…” whispered Liv, wanting to hear nothing but CB’s voice singing her favorite song.

  In my mind I’ve already let this go too far

  Saying goodbye tonight

  Would be just like a broken heart.

  Let’s don’t let go of this

  No, let’s don’t let this go.

  The song ended and Liv wished she could hit replay, like she did so often when she listened to their music. It was as though the words of every song were written just for her. She’d never forget this night, finally having the chance to see them perform live.

  Since CB Rice was the opener for the opener for the headliner, their set was short. After six songs, CB thanked the bands that would come after them for inviting them on stage tonight.

  “Playing Red Rocks has always been our dream,” CB told the cheering audience.

  Every band she’d seen at the spectacular venue nestled into the mountains outside of Denver had expressed a similar sentiment.

  The natural rock formations created an open-air amphitheater with perfect acoustics. A large, tilted, disc-shaped rock formed a multi-story backdrop behind the stage, and a huge vertical rock angled outward from the right of the stage. Several more large outcrops angled outward from the left.

  From the stage, rows upon rows of wooden benches led up to a vast and open view of starry Rocky Mountain nights.

  “Ready for a beer?” Paige asked.

  “Sure. Why not?” Liv smiled. She’d insisted they rush to their seats when they arrived, so she didn’t miss a single minute of CB Rice on stage.

  “We’re going to look at merch,” Renie told her mother, pulling a pouting Blythe behind her.

  “All the years they’ve been friends, you’d think Renie’s personality would’ve rubbed off at least a little on my daughter.”

  “She’s fine,” Liv answered.

  Liv started humming the last song the band played, wishing again she could hear it one more time.

  “You should get a t-shirt,” Paige teased.

  “Maybe I will.”

  Two beers and one of every t-shirt CB Rice was selling later, Liv and Paige returned to their seats just as the second band took the stage.

  Their seats were situated just outside the roped-off area that was designated both for VIPs, and for the sound equipment. When Renie came and sat beside her, Liv leaned against her daughter.

  “Having fun?” Renie asked.

  “Thank you for doing this,” Liv answered.

  “I know how much you like Red Rocks, and with three of your favorite bands playing, it seemed like the perfect way to end our summer.”

  Her daughter was a pre-med major at Dartmouth, and would be returning to school next week.

  “I miss you already, sweetheart.”

  The second band began to play, and soon everyone in the ten-thousand person audience was on their feet, dancing and singing along.

  “Look.” Renie pointed to Liv’s left.

  She looked up at the large rock formation, expecting to see something projected on it. “What?”

  “Not up there. There.” Renie pointed again to the VIP area, where CB and his band were seated.

  When Liv looked over, CB was looking right at her, just like he had been while onstage. Warmth traveled up her cheeks, and she looked away. A few minutes later, she looked back. His eyes still rested on her, this time he smiled and winked.

  “Hey, you.” Paige smiled when Liv scooted closer, putting Renie and Blythe between her and the ropes.


  “Mom’s hiding from CB Rice.”

  Paige leaned back.

  “Don’t look,” Liv gasped.

  “Why not?”

  “He’s been staring at her all night,” Blythe groaned.

  “Shh…” the people behind them whispered again, which only made Liv and Paige giggle.

  When the second band’s set ended, Liv sneaked a peek at the VIP area, disappointed that she didn’t see any members of CB Rice.

  “You were ignoring him, so he went home,” Renie smirked. Liv rolled her eyes.

  Soon the third band took the stage, and the audience went wild. Liv forgot all about CB and his band, as she danced and sang along for the rest of the two-hour show.

  Too soon it seemed, the band played their encore, and the audience slowly began making their way to the exits.

  “Wait,” Liv heard someone yell.

  “Mom, stop.”

  When Liv turned around, CB was standing right behind her.

  He smiled. “Hi.”

  “Uh, hi.”

  “What’s your name?”

  Liv looked around. “Me?”

  CB laughed. “Yeah, you.”

  “Liv,” she answered, and then turned back around. “And this is my friend, Paige, my daughter, Renie, and Paige’s daughter, Blythe.”

  He bent to see around Liv. “I’m Ben Rice. Nice to meet you.” He waved, and then rested his gaze back on her. “Thanks for coming to the show tonight, Liv.”

  “You’re welcome. Um…well…nice to meet you. Goodnight.” Liv pushed past Paige. “Come on, let’s go.”

  “Nice to meet you.” Paige waved and followed Liv, who was already beyond the end of the row, near the exit.

  “What has gotten into you?” Paige asked when they got in the car.

  “Nothing. Why?”

  “You weren’t very polite to him, Mom.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “He was flirting with you.”

  “Don’t be ridiculous,” Liv murmured, and turned up the volume on the stereo.